Twins Still Exploring Adding Multiple Pitchers, Could Trade Trevor Larnach and Call Up Walker Jenkins

[Matthew Trueblood]

Image courtesy of Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

There's nothing better than a three-team division race in August and September. This looks like the rare one where there might not even be a soft landing in a Wild Card spot for the losers; that makes it extra juicy. The Twins are locked in a fierce battle for the AL Central title, entering Sunday trailing the White Sox by three games and in a dead heat with the Guardians—though, in a rare bit of good news about that matchup, they hold the edge on Cleveland in the season series, so they'd need to win just one of their final three games against them to secure the tiebreaker. (They have six games left against the Sox, and need to win four of them to gain the tiebreaker edge there.)

If that race wasn't already feeling heated, it gained both intensity and clarity this weekend. The Twins made trades on Thursday and Friday njights to add pitchers A.J. Minter and Dean Kremer. On Saturday morning, the Guardians took a turn, swinging a four-player swap with the Brewers that clears the runway a bit for another move to bolster their roster in the next day or so. Then, on Saturday night, the White Sox dealt for veteran Mariners starter Luis Castillo, who should reinforce their rotation nicely—a move sandwiched by trades in which the Royals (Lane Thomas and Bailey Falter to the team from just outside Atlanta) and Tigers (Tarik Skubal to the Dodgers) began their selloffs. Every team in the division has selected their direction; every team now has to make good on that direction by making more moves in the next 30 hours or so.

The Twins, for their part, are still working hard to make a major addition before the deadline. They really did have a deal in place with the Astros that would have sent Trevor Larnach to Houston in exchange for right-handed reliever Bryan Abreu, a source confirmed. That was first reported on Twitter Saturday morning and more robustly documented by Bobby Nightengale of the Minnesota Star-Tribune later in the day. Their efforts to move Larnach haven't stopped with that thwarted transaction, though. Larnach has been a topic of discussion with multiple other teams, a source familiar with the conversations said, including the Padres.

Ideally, the Twins would swap their current platoon left fielder for a relief arm with high-leverage potential, like Abreu or Padres righty Jeremiah Estrada. As intriguing as that kind of trade itself, however, is what sources within the organization say would happen if the club can find the right deal for Larnach: a call-up of top prospect Walker Jenkins to take on an everyday role in the outfield, That could mean playing Jenkins in left field, or having him take over center, with Austin Martin, Alan Roden, Kody Clemens and Luke Keaschall flanking him, depending on matchups. 

If the team can't get either a solid reliever or a strong prospect return for Larnach, however, they're content to keep him and leave their outfield mix intact. The priority is not to create space for Jenkins, though they're ready to do so if he continues to push the envelope; it's to improve the bullpen. Minnesota remains active in talks with multiple teams about hurlers who would round out their relief corps, multiple league sources said late Saturday night.

That could mean ousted Blue Jays closer Jeff Hoffman, a strikeout machine with a filthy slider whom the team briefly had in camp years ago, before he broke out with the Phillies. It could mean old friend Tyler Wells, whom the Twins lost to Baltimore via the Rule 5 Draft ahead of the 2021 season. Wells, a high-slot righty with a pitch mix that fits what the Twins like to get from relievers, comes with a year of team control beyond this one, as does Hoffman (though Hoffman's comes via an expensive contractual obligation). Estrada is a controllable high-octane arm, too. The Twins have even checked in on Luke Weaver, perhaps the most accomplished and expensive reliever on the market, though they feel the asking price will rise beyond their willingness to pay. Nor has the team foreclosed on the possibility of a combo deal wherein they would add both another important relieve and more help for the starting rotation; that could be a truly transformative splash.

It's a bit of a mudfight, this division battle. The leading White Sox would be at least seven games out of first place in four of the other five divisions in the majors. The thing is there to be won, though, and the Guardians, Twins and White Sox all have ample motivation to win it. For Minnesota, the upside is huge. Take home a division title, and you not only get that achievement itself, but earn the goodwill of many fans who had all but abandoned the team. As a bonus (maybe more than a bonus, if your surname is Pohlad), you also get to host a playoff series. Even if you lose it, that's a handsome revenue infusion. And don't overlook this bit: The two byes past the Wild Card Series go to the two best records among division winners. If the Twins play well enough to beat the White Sox, they have as good a chance as any team in the AL West (currently paced by those renegade Astros, at 57-55) to be that second-best division winner. A fastt pass to the Division Series is a big prize worth paying for; the Twins are ready to pay for it.

 

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[HarmonK03]

Jenkins could be up here today even with Larnach on the roster.  An outfield of Larnach, Jenkins and Keaschall is the best outfield we could play currently.  If anyone should go to clear playing time it is Bell.  But is there any market for him.

[weitz41]

E Rod says HEY don't forget about me!

Shaping up to be an exciting 30 hrs ahead.

[TopGunn#22]

Notably absent in this discussion is Ryan Jeffers.  I would expect he would be needed to make any kind of deal to bring back an impact RP or a starter. (or both)  The Yankees are still the team the Twins could be dealing with and with their injuries to OF's both Jeffers and Trevor Larnach could be in play.  The Yankees have a surplus of SP, especially with Carlos Rodon set to come off the IL in about a week.  

The idea of getting Bryan Abreu for Larnach straight up would have been exciting.  I would have liked to know why the Astros backed out.  They certainly need Larnach's bat.  But Abreu is only 29 and has been a stellar reliever with the exception being this year.  He struggled right out of the gate as the closer when Hadar began the season on the IL. 

But in the last 4 years he's been a 100 K RP (except for one season of 88 !!) and has been dominant.  I would like to see the Twins revisit the talks and give a little more to close the deal.  Abreu would be just what the Twins need to close games.  

There's also a chance the Twins are still talking to the Angels as well.  So far, very little has been given up (with the exception of the "potential" for Reyes).  It just feels like there is something BIGGER brewing for the Twins.  Not having Buxton in the lineup right now complicates things as does Joe Ryan's "tired arm."  But with names like Abreu, Neto, Luke Weaver and others being bandied about, it's going to be an exciting 24 hours.  

[TL]

Or designate Gray. Larnach has been good at the plate so I’d prefer, all else equal, to keep his bat in the lineup - but getting him out of left field should also be a priority. In my view you can make 3 moves to really go for it:

IN: Culpepper, Jenkins, higher leverage reliever

OUT: Larnach, Bell, Gray (Or swap out Martin and keep one of Larnach / Bell)

Result: Improved defense and bullpen, comparable hitting 

[TNtwins85]

26 minutes ago, HarmonK03 said:

Jenkins could be up here today even with Larnach on the roster.  An outfield of Larnach, Jenkins and Keaschall is the best outfield we could play currently.  If anyone should go to clear playing time it is Bell.  But is there any market for him.

They’ve gotta clear the OF glut but I’m not sure which to trade. Larnach probably gets you more back than Bell but Bell clears numerous spots by simply not holding that DH spot day to day. They both come up with solid hits when needed and with the offense the way it has been lately do you really upgrade bringing up Jenkins? Defensively yes but even as good of a prospect as he his can you rely on him down the stretch? Can you rely on Bell/Larnach? It’s gonna get interesting for sure!

[Matthew Trueblood]

23 minutes ago, TopGunn#22 said:

Notably absent in this discussion is Ryan Jeffers.  I would expect he would be needed to make any kind of deal to bring back an impact RP or a starter. (or both)  The Yankees are still the team the Twins could be dealing with and with their injuries to OF's both Jeffers and Trevor Larnach could be in play.  The Yankees have a surplus of SP, especially with Carlos Rodon set to come off the IL in about a week.  

The Twins certainly COULD trade Jeffers, the same way they could trade Larnach. But he absolutely is NOT *needed* to get the kind of deal they want to do done, and in fact, they could pay the price to get the reliever they want, keep Jeffers and lose him for nothing this winter and still be fine, depth-wise.

I won't be stunned either way, but I'd put the odds of a Jeffers trade under 40%. I think he sticks around.

[Bangkok Twins Fan]

27 minutes ago, TNtwins85 said:

They’ve gotta clear the OF glut but I’m not sure which to trade. Larnach probably gets you more back than Bell but Bell clears numerous spots by simply not holding that DH spot day to day.

That is the dilemma. As you noted, Larnach would get us a much better return than Bell, but Bell has been a steady RBI machine most of the year, plus I like his veteran presence in the clubhouse. I also think Jenkins is ready, but we have to be prepared for some initial struggles if he's called up this month. No easy decisions.